Joy Kills Sorrow has always had a knack for writing and performing intimate songs. Now the Boston-based string band is emphasizing their epic side, too, on Wide Awake, the new EP. The seven-song collection serves as a milepost in the blossoming career of a group the Los Angeles Daily News praised as 'virtuoso art folkies who understand the value of being just folks.'
Wide Awake features six riveting new original songs and a cover of the Postal Service's 2003 electro-pop single 'Such Great Heights,' showcasing singer Emma Beaton's soulful, enveloping voice on lush acoustic arrangements fleshed out by Matt Arcara on guitar, Wes Corbett on banjo, Jacob Jolliff on mandolin and Zoe Guigueno on bass.